I remember reading somewhere about the original purpose of a "wake". The recently deceased was laid out in the parlor for a day or so for relatives to visit & view. Apparently there were a lot of lead poisoning deaths at the time & it caused the respiratory system to slow down so much so, that often the person was thought to be dead when they weren't. People would come back to life in the coffin. So this viewing period was not only to pay your respects, but also to see if the body would "wake up". Hence a wake.
Not sure how true it is but it's a good story.
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